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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
60 of 62 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bad Astronomy made fun,
By "skittery99" (Denver, Colorado United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" (Paperback)
As an amateur astronomer, I took great pleasure reading Philip Plait's "Bad Astronomy". The book handles the debunking of common myths with hysterical humor. I could not put the book down. Each chapter was entertaining. Finally we have a text that not only puts the Coriolis Effect where it belongs but explains basic astronomy principles in lay terms. It is better than reading an astronomy textbook. Where else could you read about why skies are blue and why the earth has seasons than in this humorous tome. Plait gets a little more serious as he talks about the more delicate subjects of the Apollo "hoax", Velikovsky, UFOs, and Astrology. This was appropriate since many people believe in these unscientific hypotheses. He approaches these subjects in a nonoffensive, objective and scientific manner. Being a movie fan, I particularly enjoyed the chapter entitled: "Bad Astronomy Goes Hollywood." Here Plait unveils all of the Bad Astronomy we see every day in science fiction movies. In his list of Top 10 offenses, the Star Wars series is guilty of no less than 8 of them. That does not make Star Wars any less enjoyable, but it is fun to know the difference between science and Hollywood. I give this book 5 stars. I think it would be entertaining for anyone with any interest in astronomy regardless of how much or how little they know about the subject matter.
44 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A welcome addition to any science lover's library,
By
This review is from: Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" (Paperback)
Misconceptions creep into the science of astronomy perhaps more than any other science. Surveys have found that even college graduates carry persistent misconceptions or even wildly incorrect ideas about the phases of the moon or the cause of the seasons.For the past several years, astronomer Phil Plait has been battling these misconceptions, as well as the flood of just plain bad astronomy (hence the name). Plait's web site has built a loyal following, and I have been a frequent visitor there almost since its inception. For people like me, the book "Bad Astronomy" is a logical extension of the web site. For newcomers, it will be a welcome addition to your libraries. In addition to chapters on lunar phases and the cause of the seasons, Plait adds a detailed (and fairly technical) account of tides, the coriolis effect (as applied to toilet bowl water rotation), why the sky is blue, the moon size illusion, and many, many others. Digging a little deeper into the "current issues" genre, Plait also tackles Velikovsky, UFOs, creationism and astrology. His writing is very clear and should be accessible to anybody interested in science and the battle against pseudoscientific nonsense. Regular visitors to the web site will be familiar with Plait's crusade against those who persist in believing that the Apollo moon landings were faked. Plait's site led the charge against this nonsense, and he includes a treatment of the topic in his book as well. Bad Astronomy is lightly illustrated with a mix of schematic drawings (to illustrate for example, tides or the moon size illusion) and black and white photographs. Some of the chapters could certainly have benefitted from more lavish illustrations, and perhaps even some color plates (the chapter on the Apollo "hoax," for example, needed some additional photos to help dispel the most common objections). However, the format of the book (paperback) and the expense (between $11 and $14) dictated the conservative approach, I'm sure. The chapters are well balanced in size. With a topic per chapter, and 24 chapters totalling 257 pages, you won't find an indepth treatment of any of these topics, but enough to surely whet your appetite. He also provides recommendations for additional reading, both book and WWW, in an appendix. In the larger context of "defense of science" writings, Plait joins other such notables as Carl Sagan, Martin Gardner, Robert Park, Stephen Jay Gould, and Michael Shermer. Plait's contribution is a welcome one, and he is poised to take his place as a defender against bad science.
37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bad Science Encounters Good Science,
By
This review is from: Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" (Paperback)
+++++
Answer true or false to these ten statements: 1) The sky is blue because it reflects the blue color of the oceans. 2) The seasons are caused by the Earth's tilt. 3) The Moon's phases are due to the shadow of the Earth falling on the Moon. 4) The bright glow of a meteor is not caused by friction as it passes through the Earth's atmosphere. 5) There are no stars seen in Apollo Moon-landing pictures thus proving that these landings were staged. 6) The Hubble Space Telescope is bigger than all Earth-based telescopes. 7) Stars in the night sky do have color. 8) The Moon is bigger near the horizon than when it's overhead. 9) In the southern hemisphere, winters are much warmer than those in the northern hemisphere. 10) X-rays are emitted from the eclipsed sun but these X-rays do not damage your eyes if you look at the eclipsed sun. If you answered true to any one of statements 1,3,5,6,8,9 or false to any one of statements 2,4,7,10, then you can use the help of this book to clear up your misconceptions! This book, by Dr. Phillip Plait (creator of the bad astronomy internet site), corrects 24 common misconceptions of astronomical science. This book divides these misconceptions into five parts. All science is fully explained so the reader does not have to have extensive scientific knowledge. As well, there are diagrams and black-and-white photographs to aid the scientific discussions. Finally, there are recommended books and recommended internet sites for those who want to know more. Part one explains three misconceptions that occur in the home. The second part deals with five misconceptions about the Earth and Moon. Part three unravels eight misconceptions regarding things in the night sky (such as stars, planets, and meteors). The fourth part is concerned with five bad explanations of various events (such as the Moon-landings and UFOs). Lastly, part five is a special section covering three astronomy topics (such as bad astronomy in the movies). For those who have a science background (such as myself), don't feel tempted to skip a section because you feel you know the correct answer to a misconception. This is because each chapter contains much important detail. For me, I found that for those sections where I felt I knew the correct scientific answer, I still learned a lot because other interesting information was presented to enhance the discussion. Finally, I did find an error in the UFO section. This section implies that no amateur astronomers have seen UFOs. Actually, the majority of amateur astronomers have not seen them but a small minority have seen them. In conclusion, we are bombarded by bad science every day. In order to turn bad science into good science, you have to start reading good science books. This book is a good place to start!! +++++
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Astronomy Book!!
In "Bad Astronomy" Phillip Plait gives the reader a detailed rebuttal of the most famous misconceptions regarding the moon, stars, and space in general.
Published 11 days ago by Jose A. Perez
5.0 out of 5 stars
so much bad astronomy
This is my favorite skeptic book and is a blast to read. If you are unfamiliar with the author, Dr. Plait is notorious for exposing flim-flam about space.
Published 19 days ago by A. Scott
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of those books that everyone should read.
The majority of this book deals with common misconceptions about astronomical and earthly mechanisms, but there are a few hoaxes and conspiracy theories that he deals with fairly...
Published 23 days ago by Starhuckster
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good Book
This is a well written and sometimes very informative book that everyone interested in science should own.
Published 3 months ago by VinceRN
5.0 out of 5 stars
He did the whole book on a soundstage, I tell you!
What do you think you know about astronomy? For example, what causes us to have seasons? If you said that it's our distance from the sun - sorry, you're wrong.
Published 4 months ago by Chris Gladis
4.0 out of 5 stars
I should have known.
The first half of this book reads as a basic course in Astronomy, reviewing everything from the moon's phases and the seasons to why the sky is blue.
Published 5 months ago by Grundy
1.0 out of 5 stars
Phil Plait is on NASA's payroll
Of course he is going to defend the moon landings to the T. NASA pays him for this, but seriously does he actually explain why NASA keeps on delaying to go to the moon?
Published 6 months ago by The_Last_Sargon
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Read for Laypeople and Astronomy Buffs
Phil Plait does a pretty concise review of basic astronomical facts that people should know. He points out several cases of common bad science.
Published 7 months ago by J. Blum
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent book!
I love Dr. Plaitt's blog, and I really enjoyed this book. It's easy to understand but contains really good information.
Published 11 months ago by Benny S
5.0 out of 5 stars
A highly informative and enjoyable book.
This book was like a breath of fresh air - dealing with something very different than any other book out there and in a really fun way too.
Published 14 months ago by Ramiz Qureshi
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Consider the humble chicken egg. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Hubble Space Telescope, United States, Milky Way, Moon Illusion, Space Shuttle, Star Trek, Phase the Nation, The Gravity of the Situation, Blue Skies Smiling, Dreaded Enemy, New York City, Our Hero, Idiom's Delight, Space Telescope Science Institute, Star Wars, Proxima Centauri, Buzz Aldrin Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
- Worlds in collision by Immanuel Velikovsky on 6 pages
- Rain Of Iron And Ice: The Very Real Threat Of Comet And Asteroid Bombardment (Helix Books) by John S. Lewis on page 139, page 140, and Back Matter
- We never went to the moon by Bill Kaysing on page 157, and page 173
- Earth in Upheaval by Immanuel Velikovsky on page 174
- Captured by Aliens: The Search for Life and Truth in a Very Large Universe by Joel Achenbach in Back Matter
See all 17 books this book cites
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